Prior Lake Athletics for Youth

Dear Parents/Players:

Hello, my name is Kevin Hafermann. I am the VP of Baseball for Prior Lake Athletics for Youth (P.L.A.Y.).  The 2012 season will be my third year as VP and I look forward to a very exciting year.  I really look forward to continuing on with making the P.L.A.Y baseball program one of the best organizations in the state.

My Role:
My Role as the V.P. is to oversee both the In-house and Traveling programs for all of PLAY.  I work very closely with Mike Murray (In-House Director) and Mike Keating (Traveling Director) to keep the programs in line with our budgets, provide opportunity for all kids in the program, and to keep the programs moving forward.  I am always available to answer any questions that can’t be addressed by Mike M or Mike K.   

Levels of Play

In-House – Available for Pre K thru 6th/7th grade. They play against teams at their own grade level during the season. For an idea on the schedule - click on 'In-House' on the left side of the page. This is more developmental and recreational play with a season ending tournament for 2nd - 6th/7th grades. All these games are played within the Prior Lake / Savage School District area.

Traveling – This is available for 10-15 yr olds with P.L.A.Y. Games may be played throughout the Metro area and there are tryouts for these teams. Unfortunately due to field capacity and coaching capabilities these teams are limited to certain numbers each year. There are tournaments on at least 4-5 weekends and some teams will play in more tournaments. For more details click on "Traveling' to the left side.

8th – 9th Grade In-House – We will once again team-up with the Burnsville In-House program. Our PL teams will be placed with teams from Burnsville and Shakopee. Some travel may be required but will be limited. No weekend tournaments. We will make every effort to schedule league games during the week but due to field constraints there may be some weekend games. Season will run from mid-April to mid July. No tryouts or tryout fee. Uniforms Included (Hats, Shirts, Pants, Socks & Belt).
This program is ran under the Traveling Program so please direct any questions to Mike Keating e-mail -mkeating@skytechmw.com.

The 10th-12th graders will still have an option to play baseball with the Prior Lake Amateur Baseball Association. P.L.A.B.A  (not associated with P.L.A.Y.) supports the Legion team, Jr. Legion team, Sr. Babe Ruth, a MBL U18 team, the Jays, and the Mudcats. For contact info on these teams please visit www.priorlakebaseball.com.

If you have any questions on the Traveling or In-House programs please refer to the web-site first. If you can’t find your answers there please e-mail Mike Murray for In-House (mpmurray@mchsi.com) or Mike Keating for Traveling (mkeating@skytechmw.com).

Volunteering:
We have openings on the in-house board in 2011 and really need some people to step up and help.  Even if you know nothing about baseball, we are willing to train you and you will get a full or partial reimbursement for your baseball fee!  If you have interest please contact the In-House Director – Mike Murray at mpmurray@mchsi.com.

On the Traveling side we are expanding our Board and we are in need of volunteers for the following positions:

Age Level Coordinators for 10U and 13U(one for each age group)

8-9th Grade In-House League Coordinator

PLAY Tournament Concessions Coordinator

PLAY Tournament Committee (3-4 members)

PLAY Outside Tournament Coordinator (schedules all tournaments)

For more info go to the Traveling Baseball Webpage or you can e-mail Mike Keating at mkeating@skytechmw.com.

Perspective:
As much as we all wish our kids will be the next Joe Mauer, the reality is 99.9% of them will not.  Please keep our games and practices in perspective when you attend.  This is not the World Series and the bottom line is that the kids have fun whether they win or lose.  Our Umpires are kids from the community that have been or still are involved in the PLAY and High School programs, and from time to time they will have a bad game too.  Please remember that they are learning too, and will make mistakes.  They are part of the Baseball program and must be treated with respect.

2012 Season:
The planning for the 2012 season is wrapping up soon!  If you have any comments or suggestions please let us know as soon as possible so we can talk about them at our next board meeting.  We really do value your input so we can build our program to be one of the best in the state.  

Thanks for Supporting PLAY Baseball and we will see you on the fields in the spring. Registration is open and closes for Traveling in early February and In-House should register by early March.

Keep checking back for information on winter clinics hosted by the High School and Legion Coaches.
Kevin Hafermann – V.P. of Baseball

Coach Ryan Schwertman and the Prior Lake High School Baseball coaching staff will be conducting 4 day camps for kids ages 6 through 14 this summer.  If you are interested in enrolling please click on the applicable file below.

It was a trying season with many weather issues but a succcessful season on the diamond. Thanks to those that played this year and to your successes.

Here is a list of how some of our Traveling  teams did this season in League and State games!

MBL League Regular Season

10A – Region 1, 1st place

11AAA – Region 1, 1st place

12A – Region 1, 1st place

13A – Region 1, 1st place

MBL League Playoffs

10A – Tier 1 Champions

10AAA – Tier 2 Champions

11AAA – Tier 1 Runner-up

15AA Blue – Tier 2 Champions

MBT State Tournament

12A – Champions

13AA Blue – 4th  Place Finish

14AAA – 4th  Place Finish

15A White – 3rd  Place Finish

MSF State Tournament

13AAA - Champions